Twenty-six cheerleaders rescued from lift

**Honey** · August 8th, 2008, 06:54 AM

The girls, aged between 14 and17, managed to get into the lift on Tuesday night at the appropriately named Jester Residence Hall on the university campus.
They had been attending a cheerleading camp - but its lessons on contortion did not include any advice on how to extract their tinsel pom poms from a difficult situation.
After taking deep breaths they managed to close the lift door and descend to the first floor - but when they touched down the doors refused to open, sending them into a panic.
After the cheerleaders eventually contacted the outside world by calling from a mobile phone, repairmen were rushed to release them.
However, it took 25 minutes to fix the door and free the increasingly alarmed girls.
One fainted and had to be treated in hospital.
The university authorities failed to see the funny side, however. "It's dangerous actually," said Rhonda Weldon, the university police spokeswoman. "They're lucky that that's all that happened.
"Take the sign seriously. There are signs everywhere: no more than 15 people or 3,000 pounds."

Twenty-six University of Texas cheerleaders rescued from lift - Telegraph